News

Church ban on gay weddings ‘illegal’

The legislation for same-sex marriage gives most religious organisations the freedom to decide for themselves whether to conduct gay weddings

THE government’s attempt to protect the Church of England from having to
perform gay marriages could be illegal under European law, one of the
country’s leading human rights barristers has warned.

The legislation for same-sex marriage, to be debated by the Commons next
month, gives most religious organisations the freedom to decide for
themselves whether to conduct gay weddings. However, there is an explicit
ban for the Church of England that can be overturned only by a new law.

Aidan O’Neill QC, an expert on EU and human rights law at Matrix Chambers, has
warned that the ban is “eminently challengeable from a human rights
perspective and may well not stand up to scrutiny”.

O’Neill, in a written opinion prepared for the Coalition for Marriage (C4M),
points out that the Church of England’s status as the established church
gives it the legal duty to conduct weddings for anyone legally entitled